This invention relates to a pressure fluid spray system, specifically to a hand-held spray gun having an interchangeable and disposable cleaning fluid cartridge wherein the gun has a selector valve for alternatively drawing fluid from the cartridge.
There are many spray gun configurations known in the art. The present invention is designed to meet the needs of users who are required to provide for rapid cleaning and rinsing operations without the use of skilled operators. In operations where the cleaning solutions must be accurately formulated because of the high cost and/or high toxicity of the base solution, the present invention provides accurate metering of highly concentrated cleansers or disinfectants. Since the operator is not involved in the metering operation, human errors are largely eliminated. Further, since the metering valve is disposed with the disposable cartridge, accuracy of the amount of fluid delivered for mixing is assured because a new valve is provided more frequently.
Another significant advantage of the present invention is that the system provides a spray gun with the capability of alternating between a low pressure (aerated wide spray) cleaning mode and a high pressure (non-aerated narrow spray) rinse mode, without requiring complex operations by the user. A simple operation of the unique selector valving of the present invention allows for a rapid and safe changeover from one mode to another. The user is not required to handle any highly concentrated and/or highly toxic base solution in order to make the switch from cleaning to rinsing.